


Manipulated Hearts

by aWiseOwl



Category: I Medici | Medici: Masters of Florence (TV)
Genre: Angst, Enemies to Lovers, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Not Canon Compliant
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-29
Updated: 2020-07-02
Packaged: 2021-03-04 01:15:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,055
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24985189
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aWiseOwl/pseuds/aWiseOwl
Summary: Francesco and Bianca have been secretly seeing each other despite his and Lorenzo's rivalry. Their relationship was an open secret in the Medici family. At the mass, Giuliano and Lorenzo are attacked by Jacopo's men; Francesco is amongst these men but when he is to stab Lorenzo, he fails to do so. The city sides with Lorenzo; Salviati, Francesco and Montesecco are caught. Francesco is about to be hanged when Bianca rushes in.
Relationships: Francesco de' Pazzi/Bianca di Piero de' Medici
Kudos: 2





	1. The Conspiracy

**Author's Note:**

> Setting: Season 2 Episode 8 – The Mass
> 
> Canon divergence: Francesco and Bianca have been secretly seeing each other despite his and Lorenzo's rivalry. Their relationship was an open secret in the Medici family.
> 
> At the mass, Giuliano and Lorenzo are attacked by Jacopo's men; Francesco is amongst these men but when he is to stab Lorenzo, he fails to do so. Giuliano is murdered by Simonetta's husband. Lorenzo survives. The city sides with Lorenzo; Salviati, Francesco and Montesecco are caught. Bianca was late to the mass as Francesco arranged for her to be delayed.

"They've got him, Lorenzo!" One of the guards announces and soon enough, Francesco Pazzi is unceremoniously led to the room. His hands tied behind his back, his dishevelled hair mixed with blood, he is pushed onto his knees next to Salviati and Montesecco. He raises his eyes to Lorenzo, who is bending against a table with a bloodied dagger in his hands.

"We were friends, Francesco." Lorenzo says after a moment of deadly silence, interrupted only by Salviati's rapid breathing.

Francesco looks Lorenzo right in the eyes. His expression is unreadable, neither filled with sorrow, nor with pride.

"You are a Medici. I am a Pazzi. We could never be truly friends." He says with resigned but resolute tone.

Lorenzo understands; and he knows that he must finish the rivalry between their families once and for all. It might go against all his humanist ideas that he had tried to live by, but his brother's murder opened his eyes.

"Hang them." Lorenzo says only, deaf to Salviati's pleading.

Francesco looks up; he knows that this is the end. He knows that he has failed at everything.

With one last look at his defeated rival, Lorenzo starts walking out of the room.

"Lorenzo." Sandro stops him. "Don't do anything you might live to regret."

However, it is clear that Lorenzo has already made up his mind.

"Hang them." He repeats emotionlessly.

"Lorenzo. Lorenzo!" Bianca screams as she bursts into the room.

"Are you alright?" She breathes out as she embraces her brother, her eyes filled with tears.

"I will live." Lorenzo answers softy.

"I've seen Giuliano. They…they…they have…" Bianca begins but is unable to complete the sentence.

"I know. I know." Lorenzo tries to comfort her but his own voice breaks

"I've tried to stop the bleeding, do something. I've tried…with mother…we've tried…"

"Bianca. Look at me. It's too late for Giuliano." Lorenzo says while looking into his sister's eyes.

Bianca calms down a little. 

"I am so glad that you escaped unharmed. I had to see you in person. I saw that mother and Clarise were taken home. I still can't believe that this happened. And at the mass!" Bianca says.

"Me neither. I should have known…" Lorenzo blames himself.

"No. You couldn't have expected this. No one could. And in the cathedral out of all places." Bianca says as she keeps her sight at her brother.

A sudden, loud scream from outside fills the room.

"Listen, Lorenzo. The city is in the state of chaos. People are looting the conspirators' houses. They are hunting them down. If….if it's too late for Giuliano…we must try to save Francesco. He must have been dragged into this involuntarily. We must find him before the crowd does and harms him."

Lorenzo gives Bianca a pointed look.

"He wouldn't have raised a weapon against you or Giuliano, wouldn't he?" Bianca says anxiously but with complete persuasion.

Lorenzo weights his words carefully. "He might have been too much of a coward to literally stab us, but he has stabbed us in the back. He and his uncle planned all of this and brought the other conspirators in."

"But Lorenzo, you are not listening to me. We must find him before the crowd does. They might kill him."

"They are not going to kill him, Bianca." Lorenzo says slowly.

"How can you be so sure?"

"Because they have already found him and brought him to me. They can't kill him because that's what I am about to do." And he looks aside.

Bianca, confused as she is, finally diverts her sight from her brother and she notices the three men kneeling on her left.

"Francesco." Bianca breathes out as she spots her lover kneeling on the ground with his gaze diverted to the ground. She notices that his eyes are full of tears but none of them found a way down his cheek yet.

She automatically makes a step towards him but then she stops herself.

"Francesco. What have you done?" Bianca whispers.

Francesco raises his head as if it was the most difficult thing in the whole world and slowly raises his eyes to Bianca as if the movement itself was causing him pain. He makes a move to say something, but no words leave his mouth, instead, a single tear escapes his eye and makes its way down his cheek. Francesco turns his face away in shame.

"Are you injured?" Bianca asks him softly and makes a few steps towards him.

The guards, unsure whether to carry out Lorenzo's orders at once, silently ask Lorenzo who gives them a signal to wait.

Bianca kneels in front of Francesco, her own face covered with dirt, tears, and Giuliano's blood.

With his head still down, Francesco whispers: "No. You should get out of here."

"No. You owe me answers. What has happened?" Bianca says.

She raises her hand to touch Francesco's bloodied cheek to make him look up at her.

"You know what happened." Francesco whispers, now unable to hide the pain from his voice. "Please, go now."

"No, I don't. I know what everyone says but it can't be true. You wouldn't…my brothers…Lorenzo!" Bianca suddenly remembers his words. "What have you said?" She stands up and addresses Lorenzo.

Lorenzo gives her a long look and then nods at the guards. At his command, they manhandle the three kneeling figures up and begin dragging them towards the open windows. Trying to make sense of the situation, Bianca quickly scans the room with her eyes and she notices a few men preparing nooses.

"Lorenzo?" She asks, her voice shaking, as the guilty are being hauled towards the windows.

"Hang them." Lorenzo repeats only.

Bianca stares at him in disbelief. "Lorenzo. There must be an explanation. You need to ask Francesco."

"There is an explanation. His uncle was to be declared the ruler of the republic. The Pazzis organised the assassination to seize power."

"And this is what Francesco has told you?" Bianca urges him as she throws a side look at the guilty men whose necks were tightened in the noose.

"He didn't have to tell me anything." Lorenzo says.

"Ask him." Bianca pleads. "Lorenzo, for the love of God, please, ask him now."

Lorenzo doesn't answer but walks towards Francesco who is now standing right next to the window with the noose around his neck. The chant _hang them_ can be heard from the outside.

"Confess before my sister, Francesco." Lorenzo says firmly while keeping eye contact with Francesco.

"Get her out of here before it happens. Please." Francesco whispers so that only Lorenzo can hear him.

Lorenzo gives him a scrutinising look and then barely visibly nods in agreement.

Still looking at Lorenzo, Francesco says: "I have conspired with my uncle to have the Medici brothers killed during the mass. I might not have delivered the final blow, but it is as if I did."

The words hang in the air.

"Do it." Lorenzo gives the order and the men start pushing Francesco closer to the window. Bianca runs towards him. She stops right in front of Francesco and places her hands on his shoulders. She looks at him in disbelief.

Francesco raises his eyes to meet hers and at the moment, he is unable to stop the words from leaving his mouth. " I am sorry, Bianca."

The crowd cheers as Montesecco is pushed out of the window. Bianca watches the scene, paralysed. Salviati follows.

"Bianca." Lorenzo takes her by the elbow. "You need to go."

"No." Bianca plucks out from Lorenzo. "You can't make me."

"Guards." Lorenzo says and they grab Bianca.

"Lorenzo. I have just seen our brother die. You can't make me."

Lorenzo loses his temper.

"Do you want to watch your lover die as well?" He screams. "Go!"

"You can't kill him" Bianca says matter-of-factly.

"This man is responsible for Giuliano's death, Bianca." Lorenzo says in disbelief. "Do you care about him more than about your own brother?"

"You can't kill him." Bianca repeats. "He is a citizen of Florence. He needs to be judged by its laws. So that the truth will come out." She keeps looking at Lorenzo. "If Salviati and that man," Bianca points to the windows, "came into our city to commit murder, they must have been punished. But Francesco Pazzi is a citizen of Florence. He has to be judged and sentenced according to our laws. These are the laws that our grandfather helped to institute."

"The result of such a trial will lead to the same verdict as the one that is just about to be carried out." Lorenzo answers.

"All I ask is for the whole truth to come out so that Giuliano's murderers can be rightfully punished. Such truth cannot be reached in the middle of this chaos." Bianca says.

Lorenzo is silent for a long time.

"Take Francesco Pazzi into the prison. He will await his trial there." Lorenzo decides finally.

Bianca is careful not to look at Francesco as he is being manhandled out of the room. Instead, she embraces her brother once more.


	2. Chapter 2

"You want to go see him."

It was a statement, Bianca noticed.

"Yesterday mother screamed at me demanding if I was involved in the attack." Bianca replied, facing bookshelves.

"Bianca." Lorenzo walked in front of the bookshelves when he understood that Bianca would not face him. "Bianca. Mother is grief-stricken. She doesn't know what she's saying. She blamed me for abandoning Giuliano as well."

Bianca raised her tearful eyes. "I think she meant it. She thinks that I should have known it, guessed it somehow from Francesco's behaviour."

"None of us could have predicted this, Bianca. We are not to blame." Lorenzo said softly.

"It's all Jacopo's doing. If it hadn’t been for him, Francesco would never have organised anything like this."

"Jacopo's corpse is hanging outside the palazzo now." Lorenzo said. "But you were right yesterday. It's better if we put at least Francesco on a trial. It'll look more legitimate in the eyes of the people of Florence. We have already lost the Pope when we hanged Salviati. We need the people more than ever."

"We both know I didn't say it because of politics, Lorenzo." Bianca said.

"I know but I also know how much you loved Giuliano. I trust you enough to believe that you want justice to be served."

"Justice, yes. But not revenge against Jacopo to be enacted on Francesco."

"That's why I need your cooperation, sister." Lorenzo got to his point. "I want you to visit Francesco."

"You what?" Bianca said in disbelief.

"I want you to go to see him. When I talked to him yesterday, he seemed resigned to his fate. He would not show remorse nor say anything. I believe you are the only one who can get him to talk."

"So you believe he was dragged into this against his will." Bianca said with hope.

"No. His guilt is undeniable. But he could tell us more about the conspiracy. To what extent the Pope was involved, whether Pazzi had some supporters whom we have not identified yet..."

"You want me to manipulate him."

Lorenzo sighted. "For the good of the Medici. For the good of Florence. And for Giuliano."

Bianca opened her mouth but then changed her mind.

"I'll do it."

Lorenzo embraced her. Bianca returned the gesture, but her eyes remained cold, staring at the bookshelves in front of her.

_She caressed his hair. He leaned into her touch and she leaned in to kiss him. His lips were soft and the kiss tender. When she opened her eyes, she discovered that he was watching her with his dark brown eyes. Those eyes were filled with much care and affection; how very unusual for them. For a moment, Bianca forgot the meadow there were lying in and the city of Florence towering above them nearby. All that existed were those brown eyes and the soul they so carefully guarded and now, for one precious instant, they let their guard down and let her in. And there it was; the good core covered in thorns made of years of pain, betrayal, and mistrust._

_“Promise me one thing, Bianca.” Francesco said, his deep smooth voice resonating in the silence._

_Bianca smiled at him._

_“Promise to never lie to me.”_

_“I promise.” Bianca said._

_Francesco drew her closer to him._

_“I just want to be honest with one person in this world.” Francesco whispered into Bianca’s hair._

_“Well if I am to be honest, Francesco,” Bianca said and propped herself up on her elbows. “I think I love you.” She said and looked down._

_When she looked up, Francesco's eyes were wet._

_“I love you too.” He said and kissed her._

Bianca has never been inside the city prison. She found herself being grateful for that; it felt so cold that she covered herself inside her cloak immediately at the entrance. She was escorted by a guard who looked at her both with sympathy and with admiration. No one outside the Medici knew of her involvement with Francesco and now, they all looked at Bianca as the strongest of Medici who was willing to face her brother's murderer. She didn't want to think about that.

"Do you want me to stay inside whilst you interrogate him, Madonna?" The guard addressed her.

"No. I have strict orders from Lorenzo to speak to him alone." Bianca replied.

"As you wish, Madonna. Should we stay right outside the door in case he tries anything?" The guard added.

"Not necessary." Bianca said and after a moment, she added: "In fact I must ask you to place in me complete trust, messere. It must suffice you that I am acting on Lorenzo's instructions."

"Of course, Madonna. It is not up to me to question neither yours or your brother's actions. I only make sure that your brother's murderer gets what he deserves." The guard said and they walked through the dim, abandoned corridor in silence.

"You shall not hurt the prisoner unless my brother commands so." Bianca said after a while.

"Of course not, Madonna."

Bianca bit her lips and took up the courage to ask the next question.

"Has my brother commanded him to be...mistreated anyhow?" She said trying to keep her tone matter-of-factly.

"No, Madonna. Pazzi was placed in the cell yesterday on your brother's command and no one has been to him since." The guard said as they stopped in front of the heavy, metal door leading to the last holding cell.

When he moved to unlock the door Bianca caught his arm, looked him in the eyes, and said: "Do not let your eyes mistake you, messere. I can take care of myself. I pray you to give us the privacy Lorenzo had asked you for."

The guard nodded his agreement and opened the doors. Bianca took a deep breath in and stepped inside. Before she got the chance to look around the cell, the doors closed behind her with a loud bang.


	3. Chapter 3

The cell, which was inhabited by Bianca’s grandfather all those years ago, seemed even colder than the rest of the prison. The damp walls were circling in the dusky space devoid of any furniture. Bianca quickly registered from the scratches on the coarse ground that there used to be a bed recently.

At first, she could not see him. For a moment, she panicked, thinking that Lorenzo had tricked her and that Francesco was already dead. Missing a heartbeat, she made a step forward and she finally laid eyes on him.

_“Madonna Medici.” Francesco greeted her mother at the doorsteps._

_“Francesco. Here to see Lorenzo?” Lucrezia asked in good spirits._

_“I was actually hoping to speak to Bianca. She left her book at the mass the other day. I found it with her name inside, so I’d like to return it to her if possible.” Francesco said, well-aware of how pathetic his excuse was._

_“How very kind of you, Francesco. Go ahead.” Lucrezia said with a smile and went about her business._

_Francesco quickly went up the stairs into the Medici living quarters, wondering as he always did that the Medici would let him, a Pazzi, wander around their house unchecked._

_He eagerly knocked on her door and when he heard a ‘come in’, he stepped inside._

_“Francesco.” Bianca looked up from her painting and letting go of the brush, she smiled at him and crossed the room to kiss him. Francesco was always overcome with emotions upon hearing how excited Bianca was to see him. Even though he wasn’t bringing her any secrets of Jacopo, or Lorenzo, or lending her Pazzi Bank’s money, she was happy to see him. She was the only person to whom he brough just himself and the only person for whom that was enough._

_“What is today’s excuse?” Bianca asked while embracing Francesco._

_“You left a book at the mass. I brought it to you.” Francesco said._

_“A book? Hm…let me see.” Bianca smiled and took the book that Francesco was holding. It was the Sonnets by Petrarch._

_“I’ve actually never read these. They are absurdly sentimental.” Bianca laughed._

_“So are our meetings.” Francesco teased her._

_“Are they?” Bianca asked and kissed Francesco on the nose. He rolled his eyes but the smile in his cheeks betrayed him._

Francesco’s tall figure was curled up against the opposite wall. Suddenly, he seemed very small and very alone.

His clothes were still torn, dirty, and bloody. Bianca couldn’t see his face for it was obscured by his hair. The brown hair, which would usually be combed back, now freely hanged around his face. They seemed longer this way. His arms were still uncomfortably twisted behind his back, tied up tightly.

“Francesco.” Bianca whispered

He didn’t move at all. It dawned on Bianca that he must be sleeping. She quietly walked to him and sat down right next to him. She caught herself not wanting to wake him up; for what awaited him when aroused? She felt that he shouldn’t be left here, alone with his terrifying thoughts as the only companion.

_What a terrible person you are. He killed your brother and you care for his convenience._

Bianca buried her face in her hands. The more she thought about everything, the worse she was feeling. Her conflicted mind still didn’t come up with a way to approach Francesco.

“Francesco.” She whispered finally.

He didn’t react.

He must be so exhausted.

_Exhausted from trying to assassinate your entire family._

“Francesco.” She said again, this time more audibly. Gently, she shook his shoulder.

Startled, Francesco opened his eyes and blinked rapidly. Bianca tenderly tucked his hair behind his ear when he abruptly looked at her and she let her hand fall down.

Francesco’s eyes were filled with wonder and fear of a frightened child who was taken out of his house and put into an environment he doesn’t recognise. At that moment, he looked so innocent and Bianca finally understood it. She couldn’t choose between Giuliano and Francesco. She needed to protect the vestige of goodness still left in Florence, no matter where she would find it.

“It’s just me, Francesco.” Bianca said softly.

After a moment of confusion, the previous day came rushing into Francesco’s eyes until they closed behind the heaviness of it. He once again leaned against the wall.

“How could they let you come here?” Francesco finally asked.

“Lorenzo allowed it.” Bianca answered.

“Why would he do that?”

Bianca hesitated only for a moment. “He thinks I can get you to talk to learn some information of importance.”

That statement made Francesco open his eyes.

“ Why would you tell me that?”

“I promised to never lie to you, did I not?” Bianca said.

“I promised to never hurt you.” Francesco said after a long while.

“So you did.”

Francesco closed his eyes again as if not to have to face the world with all his senses.

“Do you hate me?” He whispered finally. “Don’t you hate me?” He hated how afraid he was to hear the answer.

“And you?” Bianca dodged the question. “Do you hate me?”

“What?” Francesco exhaled deeply.

“I am a Medici. You are a Pazzi.” Bianca said.

Francesco didn’t say anything.

“You are doing to me now what you have always hated the most. What you felt that Jacopo and Lorenzo were doing to you. You refuse to tell me the truth.”

“What if the truth is too terrifying to be told?”

“I don’t care whether the truth is terrifying, pathetic, or scary. We promised something to each other, Francesco. All I ever asked of you was to respect me enough to trust me with the truth.”

“What if I tell you the truth and you begin to think I am saying it so that you feel sorry for me? To try to save my life? Or what if the truth makes you think I am a monster?”

“I deserve to know nevertheless.” Bianca answered.

“You tell it to Lorenzo.” Francesco said.

“Does it matter to you more what Lorenzo thinks or what I think? And when it comes to how people see you now – to be honest with you, there is no need to try to keep up your pride. There isn’t much left anyway.”

Francesco chuckled sadly. He seemed to be fighting an inner battle.

“I don’t want to hurt you more than I already did.” He admitted finally.

“You hurt me the most when you refuse to confide in me. It makes me feel as a traitor to my family, if you don’t trust me enough to believe my intentions.”

“I trust you.” Francesco admitted quietly and his expression turned pained as he tried to ease the pressure on his arms.

“I trust you too. And I don’t hate you, of course I don’t hate you. But I need to understand.” Bianca said as she reached for something hidden under her cloak.

She pulled out a dagger.

With an effort, she cut the rope binding Francesco’s hands behind his back. When the rope finally gave in, a moan of pain escaped Francesco’s lips as he tried to move his arms into a natural position. It wasn’t easy having spent so many hours like that. Bianca helped him. As Francesco sat back against the wall, Bianca took his hands into hers and cut the remaining rope encircling his wrists. The rope left traces; Francesco’s wrists were bloody and bruised.

For a while, they sat in silence. Francesco was still shocked that she would set him free, risking that he might steal the dagger and attack her as he attacked her brothers yesterday. At the first sight, it made her seem naïve but more he thought about it, more he understood that there was nothing naïve about her actions. She told him she trusted him. She knew that he wouldn’t try to attack her. Her lack of need to prove something to him or herself actually made her the strongest one amongst all of them. As the only one, she had faith and confidence in herself; confidence showing that she knows what she’s doing. That much couldn’t be said about himself.

“I know that I have forfeited the right to say it, Bianca. But…I am sorry. And I love you.” Francesco said, his voice breaking.

“I love you too.” Bianca answered.

The admission broke all the fight that was left in Francesco and without thinking of the consequences, without contemplating whether he deserves to do so or not, whether or not she would try to slip out in fear, he hugged her and rested his head against her shoulder. He tried not to think about how he embraced Lorenzo and Giuliano in the same way in front of the church.

Slowly, Bianca hugged him in return. Both hesitant at first, soon they found the support in each other. The moment they felt safe in each other’s arms, the tears began rolling down their cheeks.

When their tears made all the way down their cheeks and dropped from their jaws, Francesco whispered into Bianca’s hair.

“What if I don’t know what the truth is anymore?”

“We will find it. Together.”


	4. Chapter 4

“What did he say?” Lorenzo asked immediately when Bianca returned home.

“He agreed to cooperate.” Bianca replied.

“You are so brave.” Lucrezia said and with tears in her eyes embraced her. “But where is your cloak, Bianca?”

“I was upset when leaving home and so I forgot to take it with me.” Bianca said. “I am going to change.” She added and shot an important look to Lorenzo. He understood and nodded silently.

Bianca almost ran to her room. It didn’t take more than five minutes until Lorenzo knocked on her door. She let him in and closed the door behind him.

“What did you want to tell me?” Lorenzo went straight to the point.

“I can’t lie to you, Lorenzo. I don’t want to. Please, never push me to it.” Bianca said.

“What do you mean?” Lorenzo asked suspiciously.

“If I go to Francesco tomorrow…” Bianca started.

“That would be most convenient.”

“If I go to him tomorrow,” Bianca continued, giving Lorenzo a pointed look, “and he tells me what you want to hear, what happens then?”

“Sister.” Lorenzo said earnestly. “If it’s too much for you, I understand. To be honest, I think it would be too much for me too. You don’t have to go there if you don’t want to. We’ll strengthen our position differently, even if we do not discover all the families who plotted against us.” Lorenzo said and it broke Bianca’s heart how genuinely he did so.

“No, it’s not that. It’s just…just tell me.” Bianca said.

“I will keep my word. Once we get the information, we proceed with the formal trial. It’ll be brief; and all of us will be spared a long and public questioning thanks to you.” Lorenzo replied.

“I can’t accept the fact that he should be executed.” Bianca said, and her voice broke.

“What did he tell you, Bianca? You can’t let him manipulate you.”

“But he didn’t. I was the one sent there to manipulate him, wasn’t I?”

“Bianca, I understand if you still have some feelings for him. There’s nothing wrong with that. And as I have already told you; if you want to stay away from this and start moving on, you have my blessing.” Lorenzo urged.

“What if he doesn’t deserve to be hanged in public?” Bianca said.

“Bianca, he killed Giuliano. He tried to kill me. What would have happened if he had succeeded? Hm? Maybe his feelings for you are genuine, but still, what would you have done? Would you have taken the place by his side as he would have declared himself the ruler of Florence?”

“No. You know that.”

“Then maybe you should ask him about that. What would happen with the two of you had his plan succeeded?”

“I think that if his heart had been fully in it, the plan would have succeeded.” Bianca said slowly. “And he would never have been declared the ruler of Florence. That would have been Jacopo. It was Jacopo’s plan from the very beginning. Even you must admit that.”

“Of course it was Jacopo’s plan. But Francesco was given the option – we would have welcomed him in our family. I made him a godfather to Piero. I chose him over Giuliano. It was up to him to make the decision. And he chose wrong. Now he must suffer the consequences for his actions.” Lorenzo said with conviction.

“Lorenzo.” Bianca said, urging Lorenzo with her eyes. “If it were the way you described, I would agree with you. It would be what he deserves.”

“But what other way could it have been? We’ve seen it with our own eyes. Well…you didn’t but that’s because of the letter HE sent you to keep you safe, which only confirms the fact that he has planned this through. Was he manipulated by Jacopo? Yes, I am not denying that. But he wasn’t in an impossible situation; Jacopo was not holding a dagger against his throat. He could have refused; he could have warned us…he didn’t.”

“But he hesitated, you said that yourself. He only stroke when Jacopo screamed at him to do so.”

“That’s not enough.”

“Do you think you would have survived if Francesco made it his mission to kill both of you?” Bianca asked.

“Bianca, you’re forgetting that Giuliano is dead.”

“Of course I am not forgetting that. But it was Simonetta’s husband who killed him. He was consumed by revenge. He had killed his wife already.”

Lorenzo put his face into his hands.

“What would you have me do?” He asked sincerely. “I…I trusted him too. We were friends. When he embraced us in front of the cathedral, I believed him to be genuine. I don’t want to see the truth that as much as you don’t but we cannot deny the facts.”

“All I am asking is that you let me understand why he did what he did. I told Francesco that I was allowed to visit him because you wanted the information…”

“You did what?!”

“Let me finish. I told him why I was there and first, he didn’t want to tell me anything. He said he didn’t want to make it sound as if he was trying to save his life. And no, it wasn’t a part of him manipulating me to say so.” Bianca commented upon noticing that Lorenzo was about to make this assertion. “That’s not him. That’s Jacopo. That’s you. No, don’t deny it.” Bianca again predicted Lorenzo’s words. “You do manipulate people, Lorenzo. I think you know it too. And I know you do it for the right reasons, unlike Jacopo, and I am not pointing this out to slander you. I am saying it because we both know that manipulating people is not Francesco’s style. He is proud, yes, but he does not manipulate, and he is no coward.”

Lorenzo kept silent for a while.

“I get what you’re saying but my question still stands: what would you have me do?” He asked finally.

“I am asking you to trust me, the same way that I asked Francesco to do so. And should I come to believe that a series of unfortunate misunderstandings let Francesco to act the way he did, I am asking you to judge him with mercy.”

“Mercy. There can be no mercy for Giuliano’s murderer.”

“I want them punished as much as you do. And trust me – Francesco will be punished and he is already being punished for what he did. But if something led him to do this whilst something else let him to leave the cathedral without making sure you were truly dead, let’s not give up on him.” Bianca said.

“Say we find out that Jacopo made him do it. First of all, we would never be able to prove it. Second of all, our mother would never forgive us for not seeking justice for Giuliano. And lastly, we survived only because of the people of Florence. These people risked their lives for us and now they want blood.” Lorenzo said.

“There is always a way, a loophole, Lorenzo.” Bianca pointed out. “And the people….they have already had blood. And they looted the palazzo de’ Pazzi.”

“Is he really worth all of it?” Lorenzo asked quietly after a while.

“What if it was Giuliano in his place?” Bianca whispered. “What if it was Giuliano who was accused of a terrible crime and we all knew he was guilty? Wouldn’t we try to seek a way to try to understand his behaviour, to excuse it?”

“That’s different.” Lorenzo conceded after a moment. “Giuliano was a family.”

“But that is exactly the point, isn’t it? You said that we treated Francesco as one of us, but we didn’t, did we?”

“Sister. Even if you found that he’s as much to blame as Jacopo, you would still want me to spare him.”

Bianca looked Lorenzo straight in the eyes.

“Yes.” She admitted. The tears came forcefully into her eyes which were unable to hold them. “I…I’ve seen Giuliano’s eyes. They were so empty. The eyes that used to hold so much joy when he would sneak out to see Simonetta, those eyes that were capable of so much pain and remorse after her death; now they were just empty. And I couldn’t bear it. And now, when I close my eyes, I see them. I see Giuliano lying on the floor of the cathedral, those empty eyes staring at nothing. And then, those blue eyes turn into brown eyes and it is Francesco’s eyes. Unmoving, Dead. And I don’t know…I just…I just can’t.”

“I see them too. The eyes. And at the back of my mind I hear mother screaming that I abandoned him.” Lorenzo uttered and began crying as well.

“Bianca. I know that you loved Giuliano and you would not choose anyone above him. And this, this was a crime against our family. Against all of us. You shouldn’t be punished for that. They should be punished. And they have already been punished, as you have pointed out. And Francesco…” Lorenzo stopped for a second. “Francesco has been punished as well. And if he’s done that for the same reasons as Jacopo, letting him live will be a bigger punishment than killing him for he will have to live with the shame for the rest of his days. The Pazzi are finished. No one would help him now. If he did it hand in hand with Jacopo, we will exile him. I will explain it to the signoria, and to the people. I will tell them that it is done so that there will be a visible reminder of what happens when you oppose us. All his property will have been seized; he will be left with nothing but his life.” Lorenzo finished.

“And what if…what if he isn’t truly the one to be blamed?” Bianca asked.

“We’ll find the loophole as we always do. But I pray you, sister. Be careful with your judgement.”

“I am not going to evaluate him.” Bianca opposed. “Such a thing is beneath all of us. But I believe he will judge himself. And that will lay his soul bare.”

“Thank you, Bianca.” Lorenzo said and embraced Bianca.

“For what? It should be I to be thanking you.” Bianca countered.

“For making me understand what I have wanted to do all along. And for stopping me from doing something I might live to regret.”

“Thank you, Lorenzo. For not hardening your heart for most people would have done so.” Bianca said.

“Listen, Bianca.” Lorenzo said after the hug. “The content of this conversation can never leave this room. Mother can never know.”

“I know.” Bianca agreed.

“I think we are all lucky to have you.” Lorenzo added. “For you have a good heart but a sharp mind as well.”

“Looking at you, I think it runs in the family.” Bianca winked at him.

“How is he?” Lorenzo couldn’t bring himself to say the name. “Pazzi.”

“He’s hurt. Emotionally and physically.” Bianca answered only.

“I want him to suffer for what he did but when I hear of his suffering, the desire leaves me and I just feel empty.” Lorenzo said.

“I understand.” Bianca nodded.

“So you will go to him tomorrow?” Lorenzo asked finally.

“I will. That reminds me – he asked about Guglielmo.”

“Guglielmo is locked in one of the rooms in our house. I don’t believe he had anything to do with it, but we can’t let him out just yet.” Lorenzo said.

“Alright, thank you. I’ll let him know.”

“You know what, Bianca. Pazzi is a lucky bastard. I can only hope that one day I might find somehow to have as much faith in me as you have in him.”

“You have all of us, Lorenzo. The Medici. Our family. I know that with Clarice it has been rocky, but you can always count on us. And you know it. Francesco has only me left. I can’t let him down.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Firstly, I apologise for the lack of Francesco in this chapter. But he's pretty much all they talk about, so that hopefully balances it out.
> 
> Secondly, I am so lost and confused with all the moral implications of the situtation that I find it really challenging to write the dialogs so I am sorry if it seems that some of their actions are not based on enough reasoning.

**Author's Note:**

> My first venture into the Medici fandom because Francesco deserved better.


End file.
